Stephen Strasburg will not make his next scheduled start Thursday and will almost certainly be placed on the disabled list, Nationals manager Jim Riggleman said this afternoon.

Strasburg underwent an MRI of his right forearm yesterday, the results of which are still be looked at by doctors. Team officials won't determine a full course of action moving forward until they receive more information.

Riggleman didn't reveal any initial diagnosis from the MRI but did say this test offered a less-encouraging outlook than the hands-on test administered by a Phillies team doctor Saturday night. That doctor said he believed Strasburg would be fine to pitch Thursday as scheduled.

A decision hasn't been made yet who will start in Strasburg's place, but Riggleman did say rehabbing minor-leaguer Jordan Zimmermann is a possibility.

General manager Mike Rizzo is due to meet with reporters later this afternoon to provide more details, so updates to come…

UPDATE AT 5:55 P.M. — Mike Rizzo said the MRI taken on Strasburg's forearm showed a strained flexor tendon. He'll now undergo an arthrogram, an enhanced MRI in which a dye is injected inRead more »

According to Riggleman, Strasburg will be looked at further and will not pitch on Thursday. Sounds like a trip to Dr. Andrews to me..oh well less bandwagon fans at the Park the rest of the season..goodie for me!

… I agree with Tom Boswell and others who hold that the Nats should not and cannot fall back on the "suck it up and throw" line of reasoning. That is poor stewardship towards even the least of athletes. … but I wonder if, when gazing into the surreal images of an MRI, do Rizzo, Kasten et al hold the state of Stras' arm, when healthy, to a higher standard than that of your normal run-of-the-mill chucker?Go Nats!

Short of hiring a personal chaperone and caretaker, the Nats have taken every precaution imaginable to date with Strasburg and yet…Any reason to think the long layoff he had last summer due to contract negotiation affected the strength of his arm in some way or another?

Last year (2009) Zimmermann pitched just over 100 innings. Strasburg has pitched 68 in the majors and 55 in the minors for 123 innings this year.Neither pitched all that many in their first year in the majors …

Steve M. posted said 3 hours ago it was serious and had to do with the elbow but he won't elaborate.Hmmmm, who to believe….His comments are below in the posthttp://natsinsider.blogspot.com/2010/08/whats-next-for-zimmermann-maya.html

Somebody need to tell this kid that just because he can throw 100 doesn't mean that he has to throw 100. The art of being a starting pitcher is learning how to throw a variety of pitches using an easy and repeatable motion. This means not throwing at max effort all the time. Sure, you sacrifice MPH, but you gain control and moreover you don't over exert your arm over the course of a game. Shut him down and teach him to save the triple-digit gas for the really important parts of the game. Throwing 95 with control will still get a vast majority of major league hitters out with regularity, and (hopefully) keep his arm healthy for a long time.

reduxit, Rizzo, Kasten and Riggleman don't look at the MRI. Doctors do. And based on what they see, they recommend a course of action. And when doctors look at an MRI, they don't always agree on what they see. Oft times, a second or even third opinion is necessary before any kind of decision can be made. And I have no doubt that this procedure is followed no matter who the patient is.Geez, you make it sound like an MRI is a pregnancy test, with a yes-or-no answer. Far from it.

As a veteran of several arthograms, this is more complex than a "2nd MRI" that the team is trying to play up. An MRI can give you a peak into the tendons and tissue so you can see if there is damage but a arthogram assesses damage which is hard to see on a standard MRI, which likely means some sort of tear in the tendon in SS's case…:(

I find it amazing that when Strasburg was drafted it was mentioned he had never had arm problems in college. Now he's admitted that he experienced stiff shoulder problems and flex tendon problems while at SD State.

"An MRI can give you a peak into the tendons and tissue so you can see if there is damage but a arthogram assesses damage which is hard to see on a standard MRI, which likely means some sort of tear in the tendon in SS's case…:("It could mean that. Or it could mean that whatever damage there is was not even severe enough to be picked up by an MRI, so they're going in with a more detailed form of test just to be sure. Could be that the arthrogram shows only minimal if any damage too. Remember, he just felt a twinge that as of yet remains unexplained. He's not in continuous pain. He claims he feels fine. Maybe he is.

There seems like to be a perception that has developed here … has there not been an awful lot of pitchers having arm issues with the Nats in recent years?What type of throwing program does McCatty have the pitchers on that allows them to return to the pitchers mound after each outing?Wonder what type of preventive maintenance is being conducted with the pitching staff?BUT look at Hernandez, what's his secret? He throws the baseball."In 14 years, Livan Hernandez has never missed a turn."As I had discussion with my former American Legion coach during the 80's and I agree with him … Today, pitchers are not throwing the baseball enough.The way I see it, if want to increase your foot speed, do you run sprints or watch others run sprints? If you want to develop a better jump shot, do you shoot the basketball more or watch others shoot the basketball. If you want to become a better hitter, do you swing more or watch others swing the bat?OK, what should the pitchers be doing then? I think throwing the baseball more with proper mechanics and that is where a lot of pitcher are getting hurt with bad mechanics.Just because someone picks you as a "pitching coach" does not mean you are a knowledgeable instructor on pitching mechanics and developing pitchers.Last thing, Is not everyone getting a little tired of Riggleman being so over-positive?Respectfully shared!The Pibbster

Strasburg needs to taske the Nolan Ryan appraoch and just rub some dirt on it and move on..it looks like Boras pulled the wool over our eyes and forgot to mention that Litle Stephen had shoulder and flexor tendon problems repeatedly over his career at san Diego State.

Anonymous said… "Strasburg needs to taske the Nolan Ryan appraoch and just rub some dirt on it and move on."Thank you Dr. Anonymous. Glad to hear it's just soreness and not something that he could make worse by pitching. Your medical expertise and access to player information is mind boggling.